ALBANY, N.Y. -- It was a few days deep into training camp when rookie Travis Beckum finally made exactly the kind of block tight ends coach Mike Pope had been trying to teach him.

Pope immediately ran onto the University at Albany field, grabbed the third-round pick and asked, "Now didn't that feel good?"

"No!" Beckum told him.

"That's the wrong answer," Pope said.

It's understandable if it takes a bit of time before blocking a pro defensive end feels good to Beckum. He was mainly used as a receiver while playing tight end at Wisconsin and, at 6-3 and 239 pounds, probably gives up about 30 pounds to the guys across the line of scrimmage.

When the Giants drafted Beckum, he was cast as the versatile H-back threat the team hadn't previously had in its repertoire. But while he's shown how he can be a lively pass catcher -- he drew cheers from the crowd Friday morning after catching a 15-yard floater from Andre Woodson over the middle -- being a sound blocker would only expand his usefulness. His progress there has pleased the coaches, who are excited about the ways in which they can use him.

"I see it starting to develop," coach Tom Coughlin said. "He's given us that receiving threat, but he's also blocked well, to be honest with you. He really has done a better job, I think, than probably we expected as a blocker."

Not that it's a huge surprise when he's working with Pope, whose coaching resume includes Mark Bavaro and Jeremy Shockey. He worked with Kevin Boss on his blocking to fill in effectively for Shockey during the Super Bowl XLII run and then permanently in 2008. Pope teaches his players a blocking technique that encourages them to get tight with their man and stay low, using their leverage in a way Pope likens to how 747s are pushed out onto the runway at the airport.

In college, Beckum was often in the slot or split out wide, so being an extension of the offensive line was somewhat of a shock to him. Pope joked that "it's not tiddlywinks," but said that teaching Beckum actually wasn't as hard as you'd figure because he pretty much got to start from scratch without many bad habits to correct.

"I think when people always doubted me, it was my blocking ability," Beckum said. "Coach Pope has taught me a new technique, and I think it's working out well for me, especially me being undersized.

"If you get up under a guy and take his leverage away, you can do a great job of blocking."

Beckum, of course, wasn't brought in for blocking. Pope said after another season of windy winter home games at Giants Stadium, including the playoffs loss to the Eagles when the passing game struggled, the team identified the value of a player like Beckum, who can open up underneath passing lanes.

In his two decades coaching tight ends for the Giants, Pope said he hasn't worked with a similar player. But last year's tight end draft class was dominated by hybrid players. Beckum stood out to the Giants because of his production (he had 159 catches for 2,149 yards and 11 touchdowns at Wisconsin) and his ability to make plays in traffic.

"It's a great help to the quarterback because he doesn't have to throw the ball as far," Pope said. "That won't take the down-the-field game out, but just to have another weapon underneath is very difficult for a linebacker to cover. He's quicker than most linebackers by far. He's got wide receiver-type skills."

Creating the mismatch with the linebackers is actually where Beckum's ability to block is important. If teams begin to see him as a receiving threat who can outplay their linebackers, they might substitute an extra defensive back to cover him. But if the Giants then switch to a running play, and Beckum is able to help block, they could have an advantage against a defense designed to stop the pass.

The Giants have their traditional starting tight end in Boss, who at 6-6 and 253 pounds is a skilled blocker and good red-zone target, and is primed for a notable year in his second full season as a starter. But he's excited to see what Beckum can do in a complementary role, perhaps in two-tight end packages.

"I hope we can start putting the two of us in and run some double seams," Boss said. "I think he's going to be a versatile threat."

The Giants have a young group of tight ends, with Boss, Michael Matthews and Darcy Johnson each entering his third NFL season. That's helped Beckum avoid the worst of the rookie hazing, like the green toes and fingers tackle Will Beatty and linebacker Clint Sintim sported for days after vets spiked their socks and gloves with dye.

Beckum's milder chores included taking the tight ends out to dinner at The Cheesecake Factory and singing, "I Get So Weak In The Knees." Pope said the younger crew at his position has also helped Beckum's progress, because they're willing to help him along and improve together.

The Giants took somewhat of a risk in using the draft's 100th pick on Beckum, who missed the second half of his senior season with a left fibula fracture and didn't do a full workout at the NFL Combine.

But they're hoping the gamble will pay off. Pope sees Beckum as capable of becoming the kind of weapon Dallas Clark has been for the Colts. He just has one early litmus test for the preseason opener Monday night against Carolina.

"If he'll hit back when they hit him Monday night," Pope said, "that will be a good thing."